FICTIONAL
by Hannah L-Sama
Summary: Konoha, the silent oddball in a powerful Medusa family, lives a quiet, laid-back life. Until, that is, he is bitten by the Snake on his 16th birthday, discovering Kuroha, a passionately aggressive dark reflection of himself. Trying to find outlets to calm his rage and keep this dark personality a secret from his family at the same time, he joins the Mekakushi Dan,a backstreet gang.
1. Chapter 0: Haze

Kuroha took a deep breath and relaxed.

As he exhaled, he closed his eyes, letting out all of his rage and stirred up emotions, becoming calm.

His black hair faded to white, his sharp yellow eyes softened to gentle mix between red and pink, and he became Konoha once more.

His hand reached out and grasped the knob of the door, and with a turn, he opened it and pushed inward.

He stepped into the front room of his house, glancing down to slip off his boots. He heard nothing in the kitchen, so he assumed that his mother Shion was still at work.

"Onii-sama?" He heard a quiet voice chime.

Turning, he laid eyes on his younger sister, Mary. Her pinkish red eyes, the same color as his own, gazed up at him for a moment before a small smile alighted to her face, and her hair quivered in happiness.

"Welcome home." She said, her pale hands folded in front of her.

"Hello, Mary." He greeted in a voice as soft as her own. He was much more passive and calm now, contrasting to earlier when he was Kuroha.

He watched as his sister's hair stilled. Being one-fourth Medusa, Mary had inherited the powers of one, which was obvious by a simple glance to her hair. It wiggled when she was happy, jumped when she was scared, and hung limp when she was sad or disappointed. Sometimes, if they watched a movie together, it would wrap around her during the intense scenes, almost like a protective cocoon.

Konoha was brought out of his thoughts when he heard his sister's voice speak again.

"Mama said that she's be working late again, so I made some food." She smiled brightly at him. "I made some negima for you!" Then she slightly blushed, looking off to the side. "It isn't very pretty, but…I hope you like it."

He blinked, his mind processing her words. He reached out a hand and softly ruffled her hair. Their mother, Shion, constantly worked hard at her job to support her family after her husband had left her, their son and their baby several years before. It wasn't uncommon for her to work late nights to make ends meet.

"Thank you, Mary." He said, heading to the kitchen.

The table was already set, and together they sat down.

"Itadakimasu!" They chimed quietly, and set to eating.

Knowing of her brother's humongous appetite, Mary tried to cook a lot of food. He devoured it all and was still hungry afterwards, but he didn't mention that to her. His sister had worked hard, and hardly ate anything – contrary to her brother, she had a small appetite.

"Thank you for the food." He said as he helped her wash the dishes afterward. "It was good."

She gave him a smile. "I'm glad you liked it."

Afterward, he quickly ascended to his room and shut the door.

He walked over to his computer, a heavy-duty device set up with duel monitors, courtesy of his good friend, Kisaragi Shintaro.

He pressed the power button, and waited for a moment as it booted up. As soon as it did, he was greeted with the wide smile and bright-blue eyes of Ene. She was perched on the edge of his task bar, swinging her black pixelated legs back and forth.

"Hello~, Konoha!" She yelled happily. "I'm glad you're finally here! I waited a long time for you!"

"Oh." He responded, a bit startled to see her here. "Hello, Ene. Did you…need something?"

"Yep! Master wanted me to tell you great work on the job today, and that he has another one for you next week!" She chirped, waving her baggy sleeve-clad arms for emphasis.

"Okay. Is he going to send it to me?"

"Nope, I already downloaded it for you, you just need to read up on it and delete the file like I told you! Got it?"

He nodded. "Yes."

"Good! I'll see you later then, bye Konoha!" She responded, and with a flurry, she dove into a folder and was gone.

Konoha paused for a moment after she left, his mind processing all that had just happened. After a moment, he looked at his computer monitor and clicked open the file that Ene had given him.

One thing that "Kuro" disliked about being Konoha – his mind seemed to work a lot slower. He felt his mind move in an almost morose state, and his head felt empty as if he'd forgotten something important that he could never remember no matter how hard he tried.

When he was Kuroha, he felt like he was untouchable. His nerve endings tingled with power waiting to be used, his eyes were sharpened to intricate details, and his body felt poised, ready to run, jump – just _do something, _like a gun waiting to be fired.

Originally, there had been no Kuroha. He was just Konoha, the gentle giant in a family of Medusas, the only one so far to lack power. But then, on his sixteenth birthday, _it _happened. He didn't know how. All he knew was that suddenly, the snakes were there, and he could talk to them, communicate with them, and move with them. He awakened a new side of himself, and he'd never been the same since.

No one in his family was aware of this new side of him. Shion was at work all the time and Mary was too dense to suspect anything. The only one who knew was his friend Shintaro, who had accidentally left Ene inside his computer as a mistake.

When Shintaro found out, he didn't blab to anyone, as Konoha had feared he would. No, instead he'd introduced Kuroha to the Mekakushi Dan, a gang that was located downtown. He'd only been introduced to a few members, starting with Dr. Tateyama Kenjirō, who, despite being a higher up in the gang world, was relatively kind. He met Tsubomi Kido and Shūya Kano, the detective duo who were constantly bickering between one another. He met Takane Enomoto, a vessel that Ene could use to make herself human for short periods of time. Lastly, he met Amamiya Hibiya, a spoiled yet very mature twelve-year old who apparently went way back with Shintaro. The people he met were only a small part of the overall gang, but they handled things in this part of town.

He was accepted easily enough, and not only did the extra money he obtained help out his family tremendously, the gang also gave him something to do, a special way to burn off the energy he always acquired as Kuroha.

He'd mostly learned how to control his changes between Kuroha and Konoha, but sometimes he was helplessly thrown into change when he was least expecting it.

He had considered telling Mary, but he feared his sudden change from passive Konoha to darker, more aggressive Kuroha would scare her. Logically, he supposed it was only a matter of time until she found out, but he hoped to keep it a secret for as long as possible.

At times he felt Kuroha struggling to come out, wanting to handle the situation in a different way Konoha did. And sometimes, he felt both sides of him in perfect sync, striving towards the same goal. That was when he could best control both sides. Switch between the two instantly, even. It was a wondrous feeling.

Examining the contents of the folder, he read that they were planning on holding up a large department store. The owner had failed to pay a debt he owed to the gang.

He slowly read through the contents of the file, memorizing them. Afterwards, he permanently deleted the file, just like Ene had told him.

He yawned, stretching his arms over his head. It'd been a long day.

He changed and climbed into his bed, falling asleep not long afterwards.

In his dreams, the Snake was there again. Watching.

_Look at you, _it snickered. _Thinking you can control it. _

_Ah… what an ugly tale. _

* * *

**Hi there!**

**This here is my second fic for this fandom, an AU, as you've probably already noticed. This idea just came to me one day, and I had to write it down. Hope you enjoyed!**

**Please review, follow, and fave!**


	2. Chapter 1: Favoring Eyes

**Hello everyone!**

**Thanks for reading my story. I'd like to thank the reviewers, you guys left me some really encouraging words. Please continue to tell me what you think! And, I hope I didn't keep you waiting "forever", as one of you mentioned ;)**

**This chapter is a bit slow, but I wanted to open you up to the more mundane part of Konoha's life before we get to the good stuff, which starts next chapter.**

**Kuroha: And by "good stuff", she means me. **

**Kano: Of course not! She means me and danchou-chan~!**

**Kido: Shut up. **

**Seto: Oh! Do you mean we're going on a nature hike? That sounds like the "good stuff" she was talking about to me! **

**Ene: Are we going to an amusement park? **

**Hannah:...no. ****Anyway, enjoy ;D **

* * *

"Hello, Konoha!" Ayano Tateyama beamed. She waved at him with one hand, and swung her and Shintaro's arms with the other.

"Hello Ayano, hello Shintaro." He greeted in his usual quiet manner, his red eyes ghosting over their faces.

Ayano had on a bright, beautiful smile. She seemed to be always smiling, bringing joy and comfort to those around her.

Well… most people.

Shintaro looked the same as ever – bored and irritated. He was discreetly trying to free his hand from Ayano's grip so she would stop swinging his arm. He liked her – or, he tolerated her more than most – but publicly embarrassing him was going a little far.

Konoha trailed behind the two as they entered the school building, watching the other students gathering and rushing to class, darting about like schools of fish in the ocean.

"Hey guys!" He heard, and Konoha used his higher vantage point to spot Haruka Kokonose and Takane headed towards them.

Haruka and Takane weren't in the same class as Ayano, Shin, and Konoha because they were in the Special Needs class. Haruka had a difficult medical condition, and while Takane was Ene in a human body, the body itself was a bit unstable. To avoid questions, she blamed it on a disease.

Both Haruka and Takane were quite fond of Konoha. He assumed Takane appreciated his quiet attitude so that she could boss him around, and he and Haruka shared many of the same interests as well as their huge appetites.

_"__I wonder what they would think if they saw you as Konoha."_The Snake snickered. "_Would they still be your friend, or would they turn away in disgust?"_

_Ene and Shin know. _He thought back.

_"__What about Ayano and Haruka? Mary? Your mother?" _

_Ayano and Haru are good people. Mary and Okaa-san love me. _

_"__They love Konoha." _

Konoha ignored the Snake, choosing to talk to his friends instead. "Good morning, Takane, Haru."

"Hey, Konoha." Takane greeted. Konoha smiled a light smile, remembering that Takane acted differently than Ene.

Haruka smiled, bright and cheerful. "Good morning, Konoha! How are you?"

"I'm fine." He replied.

"Konoha~! We have to go or we'll be late for class!" Ayano called.

"What about you guys?" Shin asked.

"Pfff. Tateyama-sensei's a pushover. No big issue there." Takane chuckled.

Haruka laughed nervously. "They're right, Takane, we probably should get going. See you guys later!" With that, they turned back down the hall towards their classroom.

Konoha watched them go for a moment, swiveling to follow Ayano and Shin afterwards.

As they got to class, Konoha and Shintaro separated from Ayano to go to their seats in the back. Due to Konoha's height, the teacher had given him the seat in the very back of the class, and Shintaro sat next to him.

The bell rang soon afterwards, and class began. While the teacher gave a lecture, Shintaro mostly aimlessly scribbled in his notebook, only half-paying attention. Though, whether he actually paid attention or not made no difference; he got perfect marks anyway. With an IQ like his, he could probably teach the class better than sensei.

Konoha tried to take notes, but his characters turned into doodles of negima and triceratops. He could usually remember what the teacher said, but he had problems piecing it together to complete his homework. Shintaro usually helped him.

He glanced at the window, watching the sun shine on the trees and grass. He knew that Kuroha was coming out tonight; he had that job with the gang that Ene told him about.

He knew it would feel good. When he didn't allow Kuroha to have free reign every once in a while, he'd begin to nag at him, and the snake's voices would be louder.

_It's going to be great~! _

Konoha twitched, slightly disturbed by the voice. He didn't want Kuroha to decide to take over during class. So, to tune him out, he focused on the lesson, doing his best to take notes. The classes past quickly that way, and soon, school was over for the day. They met up with Takane and Haruka again in the foyer.

"Konoha, come on! We're going to Shin's house to study!" Ayano beamed, tugging on his arm.

"Hold on!" His other elbow was quickly grabbed by Takane. "Konoha's coming with _me _and Haruka to organize our project for the school festival!"

"We can do that later! Finals are next week! Let's go, Konoha!" Tug.

"This project is more important than a stupid test! The festival is next month and we have a ton of work to do!" Tug.

"Konoha told _us_ he'd come to Shin's house!" Pull.

"Konoha told us he'd help _first!_" An even harder pull.

Poor Konoha was stretched between the two girls, at a loss for what to do.

Steam was coming out of the ears of both, and Takane was glaring while Ayano looked bothered.

Then, they turned to him.

"Konoha! Tell her you're coming with us!" They both shouted simultaneously.

Now, Konoha was usually a very calm, easygoing person, but when faced with two angry girls….

He panicked.

So, he did what he always did when he was in dire need.

He turned and aimed his cutest, most innocent puppy eyes at Shintaro.

_Help me! _They pleaded.

Shintaro froze, looking like a deer caught in headlights, before he sighed heavily, slapping a hand over his face.

"Haruka," he said, turning to the boy who was currently doodling away in his sketchbook. "Can Konoha help you guys tomorrow? Ayano really wanted to study today."

Haruka looked up and locked eyes with him. "Oh but Shin, we're ready for his help! I have the designs and everything, see!"

He flashed his most beautiful, endearing smile at his friend.

Sparkles appeared in the air around him.

Shintaro gulped.

No he was caught between _two _of his weaknesses?

His eyes skittered nervously from Konoha's pleading face to Haruka's beautiful smile.

Why him?

He grunted in annoyance.

Great, now he had to take charge. Responsibility. _Yuck. _

"Konoha will be joining us today." He announced, brushing each of the girls off the giant, before taking his hand and leading him towards the door. "You can have him tomorrow."

"But Shintaro!" Haruka gasped.

"Kisaragi, I swear!" Takane began to threaten.

"No." Shintaro said, continuing on his path.

"Yay!" Ayano happily skipped to their side, taking Konoha's other hand. "See you guys later!" She cheerfully waved, ignoring the crestfallen look on Haruka's face and Takane's fury.

"We won't let you get away with this!" She yelled.

"See ya." Shintaro pulled his trio out the door.

The three strolled down the sidewalk, Shintaro still disgruntled, Ayano giddy, and Konoha quiet as usual.

Eventually, they reached Shintaro's house, and the friends made their way inside. After greeting his mother, Shin took them to his bedroom.

"You don't think we… hurt them, do you?" Konoha asked quietly.

"Don't worry about it, they'll get over it."

Konoha nodded, looking satisfied.

"But, don't expect me to save you again tomorrow! Geez."

The albino smiled, and wrapped his arms around the boy.

"H-hey, get off!"

"Thank you, Shin." He said.

"Forget it, okay? Just let go!"

Ayano giggled quietly as Konoha released Shintaro, who huffed and left the room.

"I'm grabbing some snacks." He muttered.

"Get something besides cola, Shin!" Ayano called after him playfully.

"Yeah, yeah."

Ayano chortled, seating herself on Shintaro's bed. Konoha sat down at Shintaro's computer desk chair, turning it to face Ayano and the doorway.

The door burst open with a _bang_, slamming into the wall as a blonde girl stomped in, her hand still extended from throwing it open.

"Hey bro! I heard you coming in, can I– "

She froze, her eyes wide as she stared at the two people in her brother's room. Konoha and Ayano stared back.

"Oh, um." The girl righted herself. "I'm sorry! I though brother came home alone." She fiddled with her pink hoodie nervously.

Ayano smiled. "It's fine. Nice to see you again, Momo-chan."

Momo smiled. "Yeah! How are you, Ayano-san? And hi Konoha!" She waved eagerly at the albino, who gave a small wave back.

"Just Ayano is fine, Momo-chan. Did you need something?"

She nodded, her blonde ponytail bouncing a bit on her head. "Yeah. I was going to ask Shintaro if I could borrow his phone charger." She looked down, rubbing her foot against the ground bashfully. "I kind of lost mine again…"

Ayano giggled. "He just went down for snacks, he'll be back."

"I _am _back. And Momo, what are you doing in my room?" Shintaro grunted as he came in, carrying a tray of snacks.

"Shintaro, can you _please _let me borrow your phone cord?" Momo begged, clasping her hands in front of her face and making puppy dog eyes.

Said brother's eye twitched. "What happened to yours? And don't tell me you lost it, because I know you didn't."

She sighed, dropping her face and looking down.

"I dropped it in the pool." She admitted finally.

"What?!" Ayano gasped in shock. Shintaro rolled his eyes as he turned to place the tray down.

"W-well I didn't mean to! We were walking past the pool and I pulled the cord out and then Marry tripped and bumped into me and then Seto grabbed us to keep us from falling in but – "

"Never mind." Her brother cut her off. He produced a cord and handed it to his sister, ignoring Ayano's look of astonishment. "This does _not leave the house_, understand?"

She grasped it eagerly. "Thank you so much!"

"Just leave." He herded her out of the room and shut the door behind her, muffling her still-coming thanks. With a heavy sigh, he turned back and walked over to the tray. After handing a soda to Konoha, he grabbed one for himself, popping the cap and releasing the _hiss _of caffeine from within.

The sound eerily reminded Konoha of one of his snakes.

"Your sister sure is something, Shin-chan." Ayano giggled.

He plopped down on the bed beside her, laying back and folding an arm behind his head. "She's tiring." He muttered. "Younger siblings are annoying."

Ayano rolled her eyes playfully. "They aren't _that _bad. Seto and I get along great! Momo just admires you. And Marry's a sweetheart." She turned to the albino. "What do you think, Konoha?"

He looked up from one of the books he'd picked off Shintaro's desk. "Marry is cute." He said simply, and went back to reading.

The girl laughed, her brown eyes twinkling in amusement. "See? There you have it! So, how about we start studying now?"

Shintaro agreed, and they all pulled out their homework and began to work on it. Shintaro walked the two through the lesson they'd learned today, and helped Konoha complete his homework. Before they knew it, a few hours had passed, and it was time for Ayano to go home.

"Bye Shin-chan! Bye Konoha!" She waved, her ever-present red scarf waving in the slight breeze. Shin offered a meager tilt of his hand while Konoha replied in a small wave.

As she passed out of sight, Shintaro began to speak to Konoha without turning.

"We'll have to head straight to the Dan. We've got that job tonight, remember?"

When he didn't hear a reply, he turned, only to jump, startled at the now coal-black hair, mischievous smirk enunciated with pointed canines, and sharp yellow eyes leering at him.

"Hello, _Shinshin~" _He spoke, his voice now deeper, smoother.

Recovering, Shintaro's features relaxed into a deadpan expression.

"Well, you sure didn't waste any time..."

The male's smirk widened into a grin.

"…did you, Kuroha?"


	3. Chapter 2: Clearing Eyes

**Yo yo. Wassup, punks. Guess who just got out of prison?**

* * *

With his head buried deep within his hoodie, Kuroha followed Shintaro into the department store. He checked his watch, restraining a groan as he saw that the action wouldn't start for another thirty minutes.

"Master, Master!" He heard Ene chime. "Look, they have new games out! Let's go look at those!"

Though Shintaro had his earphones plugged into his phone, Kuroha could still hear Ene due to his altered headphones that allowed him to hear the cyber girl's voice.

Shrugging, Shin headed towards the game section, where a few other customers were already browsing around. Ene badgered Shintaro to check out the newest edition of _Final Fantasy _while Kuroha idly glanced about the department store, glancing up at the many floors of the company.

"This place is pretty big." He commented, glancing around at the many customers inside. "Pretty popular, too. I guess that means more money for us, right, Shinshin?"

Shintaro glanced over irritably. "Idiot, don't talk about that out loud!" He hissed, grabbing Kuroha's wrist and dragging him away from where he'd been standing. "And _don't_ call me Shinshin!"

Kuroha chuckled, allowing Shin to lead him along. Of course, if he _wanted _to, he could resist. He could even toss the boy out the window if he felt like it. But that would be inconvenient.

As Ene and Shintaro began to bicker about something trivial, Kuroha tilted his head to the side as a tint of green appeared in his peripheral vision.

Green hair spilled out of the front of a purple hoodie, drifting back slightly as the girl paced along, her hands shoved in her pockets. None of the surrounding people seemed to notice the girl - their eyes seeming to glaze right over her.

That was one of the rare talents of Tsubomi Kido. She could become almost invisible when she wanted to; keeping those around her from noticing her presence. One time, she'd walked into a grocery store, picked up a carton of eggs, and simply walked out without paying. Stealing from _right _under their noses, and nobody noticed.

Kuroha was able to see through the façade with his sharp eyes, but he knew it was hard for most of his other companions to see her when she wanted to be hidden.

Kido passed out of his line of vision, and Kuroha returned his gaze to his companion.

"Master," Ene's voice came through his headphones, "It's just about time to get into position."

Shintaro placed the game he was looking at back on the shelf and nodded. "Alright." He looked to Kuroha, who was trying to hide a grin. "Let's go."

Kuroha turned to go, but Shintaro stopped him.

"Change back." He said.

Not sure if he understood him correctly, Kuroha grit his teeth. _"What?"_

He sighed. "Listen, it's Tateyama's orders, not mine. He wants you to change back to Konoha before it begins. You're supposed to wait for my signal to go back – "

Kuroha grabbed Shintaro's sweater collar, lifting him off his feet to bare his sharp teeth in his face. "And _why_," he snarled, "Is this necessary?"

He wasn't as afraid of him as most were, but he had the decency to show a little fear. "I don't know. Talk to him about it."

Kuroha held his gaze for a few moments.

"You're attracting attention."

He didn't need to glance around to see that it was true.

Sighing, he dropped the shorter teen back onto the ground.

"Fine." He hissed. "But we'll discuss this later."

He strolled away from Shintaro, his countenance changing. His eye were a dull red again, and his mind operated at a fraction of the speed.

It was infuriating.

Konoha struggled to calm the writhing snakes as they lashed against the cage of his mind. They hated being cooped up on short notice.

"We're approaching the top level." Ene's voice entered his headphones, distracting him from his anger. "Get ready!"

_"__Let me out, you fool, let me out…." _The voice hissed in Konoha's mind.

_Not yet. _He responded. _A little longer. _

Ene's voice came through the headphones. "Get ready, Konoha! Master's just about to plug me in! It's all a go from there!"

The voices hissed in approval, ready to be let out. Ready to reign free.

"In three seconds!" Ene called.

Konoha took a deep breath and glanced around, making sure no one was watching.

"Aaaaaaaaaand…"

He closed his eye, feeling Kuroha straining against him. _Almost. Wait. _

"Now!"

As soon as that first word was uttered, he tuned the cyber girl out, ignoring her odd cheers in favor of the change.

Konoha's hair faded to black, followed by the rest of him. His birthmark changed, his eyes turned an intense yellow, and he felt power ripple through his veins as he assured the unity of the snakes.

Immediately he shot out from his corner, a wicked grin overtaking his face. _Yes! _

He heard several _bangs _as gas canisters were released, and the store quickly filled with smoke.

_Take out security first._

The first two appeared from around the corner. His smile widened, and he immediately leapt into action. They drew their guns, but he was too fast for them. Knocking aside one of the guard's arms, he delivered a swift blow to the jaw that sent the man to the ground immediately. With a swift turn, he lifted his foot and kicked the second man in the face. The guard fell to the ground, blood flying from his busted mouth.

Kuroha quickly stooped down, grabbing the guns from the men. He tossed them without any particular direction over his shoulder, knowing they would be caught.

He was right. Instead of hearing the clatter of the weapons falling to the floor, he was greeted with two armed Mekakushi Dan members when he turned.

"You're not getting a gun?" Kido spoke, raising her eyebrow in question.

He smirked. "I don't need one."

She shrugged. "You know what to do. Make sure you tie up those guys while we round up the hostages." She turned quickly and dashed off, followed by Kano, who turned to grin at him.

"Brilliant as ever, Kuroha!"

And because he was one for theatrics, and because he had so much excess energy to waste, Kuroha followed that compliment up by leaping over one of the high shelves, clearing it in a single bound. He scanned the area, ignoring the screams of the shoppers as he searched for the security guards. There were only supposed to be two, but he didn't want to take any chances.

He hummed a cheerful tune as he pulled zip ties out of his pocket, securing the guard's arms and feet behind them.

The floor was deserted now, all customers having either fled the scene or gotten taken as hostages. He could see remains of the gas floating about, obscuring his vision of the upper levels.

He checked his watch.

The cops should be arriving soon.

Dragging the guards behind a shelf so that they were unseen, Kuroha stood and headed towards the stairs, his footsteps the only noises as he ascended to the highest floor, where the fun was happening.

Kido and Kano wore masks covering their faces, keeping a close eye on the hostages. They were all tied up and huddled in a corner of the dark room. His sharp gaze swept over them, and the few that were unlucky enough to meet his serpentine eyes flinched away, huddling closer towards their other fellow prisoners.

Hilarious.

He languidly strolled towards Shintaro, who had his laptop plugged into the network. His hands flew across the keys as characters popped up on the screen, cryptic code Kuroha didn't bother trying to decipher.

"How's progress, Shinshin?"

"Good. I'm getting into the system while Tateyama is interrogating the owner. Also don't call me that."

He glances towards a side door that was closed; Kido stood guard while faint noises could be heard from within.

"Think he'll break?"

Shintaro snorted. "Of course. Like most men who have dealings with the gang, he's a coward when it comes down to it." He glanced at the clock in the corner of his screen. "They should be wrapping it up now."

A sudden noise drew their attention, and they turned to where one of the hostages had leapt at Kano, trying to tackle him and get his gun.

Shintaro was on them in seconds. He kicked the man in the face, knocking him off his fellow gang member while snagging Kano's gun and aiming it at the man, glaring.

"You, shut up."

The man glared. "This is illegal You can't keep us here, you monsters – "

Twisting his arm behind his back, Shintaro forced the man to the floor and put the gun to his head.

"You have family here?" He asked quietly, dangerously.

The man didn't respond, but a feeble glance towards a girl nearby was all the answer Shintaro needed.

"You want to know how long it'd take me to put a bullet through her head?" He continued in the same deadly tone. "Not long. Less than a second. So unless you want her blood on your hands, shut up, sit down, and stop trying to be the hero."

With that, he quickly got off of him, tossing the gun back to Kano. Continuing back to his seat, he left the hostage shaking in his wake.

He sat down without another word.

For a few more minutes there was silence, save for the heavy breathing of the hostages and the tapping of laptop keys. Kido glanced towards them for a moment but quickly looked back at the hostages again, her mask concealing her expression.

"Wow, Shinshin, that was harsh, even for you."

The teen in question rolled his eyes, casting an unamused glance at Kuroha. "Hardly. I'm just doing my job."

"Still, I imagined you'd be more…. _Nice _to them."

"Nice? We're robbing a store, Kuroha. We're in an armed gang. There's nothing "nice" about this. I'm not going to pretend."

The Snake's lips spread into a grin. "Is that guilt I detect?"

Shintaro glared at him. "Of course not. I do this because I'm bored. I rob stores because I'm bored. Pure boredom and depression lead me to joining a street gang. That's pretty depraved if we're being honest. I'm not going to sugarcoat it by sparing a few bystanders five seconds of fear."

Kuroha cackled. "What will you do when your sister finds out? What about Ayano?"

He shrugged in response.

"What will you do when Mary finds out?"

Kuroha paused, not having expected that. He glanced back at Shin, who only kept his eyes focused on his screen and concentrated on his task.

He sighed through his nose.

"She won't."

The side door opened, and Dr. Kenjirō stepped through, a grin on his face. A faint collapsed figure could be seen in the darkness beyond the doorway.

He waved his hands, signaling to wrap things up. Kido and Kano began rousing the hostages to their feet.

"Status on the cops, Shintaro?"

"They're all on the first floor, working their way up."

"Very well then. To the roof."

Shintaro closed his laptop, standing up and shoving it in his bag. Together they all headed towards the exit at a brisk pace, ready to flee the scene.

"She will eventually." The male spoke back up as they exited the door to the roof, the bright sunlight threatening to blind them.

Kuroha didn't bother responding.


End file.
